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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24564142">Make Things Right</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeorin/pseuds/kaeorin'>kaeorin</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Loki's Lullabies [72]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Avenger Loki (Marvel), Avenger Reader (Marvel), Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Hugs, Loki (Marvel) Feels, Loneliness, POV Loki (Marvel), Reader-Insert, Touch-Starved</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 03:07:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,805</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24564142</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeorin/pseuds/kaeorin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Avengers’ darling reveals something about herself, can Loki make it right?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Loki (Marvel)/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Loki's Lullabies [72]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1678240</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>379</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Make Things Right</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So I mentioned this on my Tumblr but I also want to mention it here in case you don't follow me there: I am still (and always) taking requests for this Lullabies series! I keep them in a list on my computer and reference them often! However, my mental health has been off and wacky all week so my main priority has just been writing 1k words of whatever topic will bring <i>me</i> the most comfort. Hopefully soon I'll adjust to the craziness (while, obviously, still campaigning and donating and fighting to make things right) and I'll be in a better place to write the things that you gorgeous people are requesting. For now, I hope you'll tolerate my self-indulgence for a little while longer. (And, uh...if any of y'all come across any cute fluffy fics wherein Loki dotes on his exhausted love...send them my way?)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was, Loki believed, vitally important that he keep it very quiet, how much you intrigued him. You’d arrived in the Tower not long after he had. Of course he started out by resenting you. The others, they took you under their wings immediately. Stark raved about your creative mind. Romanoff insisted on taking charge of your training. Barnes and Rogers grinned and winked at you and called you “Sweetheart” and “Doll”, and you laughed sweetly each time they did. You exchanged fleeting glances and shy smiles with Banner for ages before either of you worked up the nerve to speak to each other, and then you were fast friends. You were the absolute darling of the Avengers. Even Thor began to ramble on and on at Loki about how kind you were, and smart, and how much Loki would like you if he’d just give you a chance.</p><p>He knew it wasn’t really fair to resent you. Seniority meant nothing in the Tower; history did. Most of Loki realized that the wary looks and even downright glares that he received were well-earned. But they irritated him nonetheless. None of them knew the whole story. None of them had ever bothered to ask. He would not go out of his way to show them their errors. He had spent his childhood trying fruitlessly to prove his worth to his father; there was no way that he’d spend his time here doing the same for <i>humans</i>.</p><p>You must have realized how he felt about you, because you never tried to push yourself on him. He often caught you watching him from a distance, or from across the room, and you were quick to look away. One of the only reasons that he never called you out on it was that, unlike the others, he rarely saw even the slightest hint of fear or suspicion in your face. He wasn’t entirely comfortable with the way you looked at him, but at least you weren’t doing it because you were waiting for him to pounce.</p><p>Another irritating little quirk of yours was your insistence on including him in team-bonding activities. They were never officially labeled as such, of course, but any time more than two other members of the team formed a group to complete an activity—meal time, a movie, a walk through the city—there you were, knocking gently on his door to ask him to join you. He had to wonder if Thor had enlisted you in his cause, because his brother often did the same thing. Privately, he preferred your method of invitation: where Thor was loud and cheerful and quick to lay on the guilt, you were more subdued. You’d smile brightly at him when he opened the door for you, and in a rush of words you’d explain whatever that day’s activity was going to be, and who was going, and told him that you’d really like it if he joined in. But when he turned you down, you did not clasp his shoulder and lecture him about showing the team who he really was. Your face would fall, but you were quick to force a smile, and you’d accept his answer gracefully. That in itself was enough, the first few times, to make him think about calling after you that he’d changed his mind.</p><p>When the world shut down, the missions largely stopped for a while. Here and there, Barnes and Rogers would be sent out somewhere, because their super-serum made them better able to fight the disease that was spreading like wildfire through Midgardians. Before, Loki never cared about missions one way or the other, but they became one of the only ways to get out of the Tower. But Fury—or someone—didn’t like sending the Asgardians out. They were afraid that an Asgardian immune system would be helpless against a Midgardian ailment or something, which made Loki scoff and roll his eyes. So he was stuck here. For who knew how long.</p><p>One afternoon, he heard your familiar knocking at the door. He didn’t like how eagerly he sprang to his feet to answer, but shook it off by telling himself that he was bored, that was all. There you stood, dressed in street clothes and smiling up at him. </p><p>“Nat and Steve and I are going for a walk,” you said. “It’s really beautiful outside and the rest of the week is supposed to be gray and rainy. Will you come with me?” Even after all this time, you never gave any signs of bracing for rejection. Was your determination admirable, he wondered, or foolish? </p><p>He wanted to turn you down again. Another ‘No, thanks,’ sprang to the tip of his tongue, cool and aloof and not particularly worried about hurting your feelings. But then he remembered how he’d feel when he watched you walk away from him, how he’d feel when he returned to the inner sanctum of his empty room, and he surprised himself. “Very well.”</p><p>For just a moment, you’d worn a gaping expression of shock, but then regained control of your face and smiled so brightly that he suddenly regretted turning you down all those times before. “Okay, great! Thank you! It’s going to be great! So, um...get your shoes, maybe, and we’ll wait for you!” </p><p>As soon as you left, all but floating down the hallway, he was back to regretting his choice. Dimly, he could remember saying some rather nasty things to Romanoff, and while he couldn’t be fully sure what they were, it was clear whenever she looked at him that she remembered them word-for-word. Rogers didn’t hold quite so obvious a grudge, but neither did he much care for Loki. The look on your face spurred him to action, though, and he dressed for the outside world and pulled on his shoes while trying not to think about how you would look if he changed his mind now. So he gritted his teeth and headed down to join you.</p><p>The outing wasn’t quite as uncomfortable as he’d expected it to be. Sure enough, the two Avengers gave the two of you strange looks, but it was like your presence discouraged them from being outwardly hostile. They walked just ahead of you on the sidewalk, and Loki walked beside you just a few steps behind them. You’d been correct. The weather was lovely: sunny and warm without being oppressive even to Loki, who preferred things a bit cooler than the typical human. You chatted happily with your teammates—including Loki, despite the way he mostly responded with awkward, one-word answers. </p><p>When you got back to the Tower, pleasantly tired from the walk, and all but glowing from the sunlight, Rogers pulled him aside. Loki braced himself, expecting something harsh or perhaps even hateful, but it didn’t come. Instead, Rogers smiled. “Hey, it was good that you came out today,” he said. “She was happier today than I’ve seen her in a while. Thank you.” He held out his hand, but Loki hesitated. He wanted to shake hands? With Loki? Simply because he realized that Loki had done something for you? Just as Rogers’s expression started to shift and he began to pull his hand away, Loki forced himself to reach out. He had a firm handshake, and squeezed Loki’s hand just before letting go. </p><p>After that, he started accepting your invitations more than he turned them down. Your eyes didn’t stop flashing with happiness at every ‘Very well’, though, and sometimes he could see a visible shift in your body language. Rogers had been right. Sometimes, you looked downright melancholy when you thought no one was looking. Maybe the Tower was not tense and uncomfortable only for Loki. He started spending more time in common areas, not <i>just</i> so that he could keep an eye on you, but...that helped. When you weren’t beaming at a member of the team, you kept to yourself. He’d catch you reading, or doing something on your phone, or writing something in a notebook resting on your lap. As soon as someone interrupted you, Loki could see the shift in your expression, and he wondered if the others could, too. They never brought it up, or at least not in his earshot.</p><p>He was conflicted. He still had little clear reason to like you. He didn’t owe you anything. On his worst days, he sometimes still resented you for how beloved you were, even though he knew that that was monstrous and horrible of him. But at the same time, he came to hate the darkness that crept across your face when you were alone. You looked sad. Lonely. Those were feelings that <i>he</i> knew well, of course, so recognizing them in someone else was easy. When he felt that way, he made damn sure that no one would try to cheer him, lashing out and snapping at people (mainly Thor) to keep them far away. But over and over again, he watched you push your own feelings to the side to interact with those who wished to speak with you. It came as no surprise to him that something he did was not universal—he knew perfectly well that he was damaged and wrong—but you surprised him each time.</p><p>One night, things changed.</p><p>It was late: the Tower was mostly dark and quiet. This was when Loki most liked to roam the space. Slowly, slowly, some of the others were beginning to warm to him, thanks primarily to you and the way that you smiled at him, but he still didn’t like meeting them one-on-one without you. As he’d wandered the corridors, he’d heard a quiet noise from somewhere in the darkness. He fell still, listening intently to try to better make it out. There it was again. A sniffle. Someone was crying?</p><p>He dithered for a moment or two. His curiosity was strong, but was it strong enough to make him risk stumbling across one of the more hostile team members in a vulnerable moment? He made up his mind, then: He’d move silently until he discovered the source of the noise and satisfied his Need to Know, and then he’d slink away again to leave them in peace. </p><p>So he moved through the corridors without a sound. The noise was coming from one of the larger sitting rooms. He pressed himself against the doorway and listened. The sniffles were muffled, as though someone were hiding their face in their hands. So much the better. They were less likely to see him. He drew in a quiet breath and peered around the corner.</p><p>It was you. You were curled on the couch and had your face hidden in your arms. He could see from the movement of your shoulders that sobs were wracking your body, but you made next to no sound, aside from the occasional sniffle. He pulled back again, and then scanned the corridors around him for anyone else. They were still and silent. He knew that he should just retreat, but something stopped him. No one else was around to hear you. Rogers might be better at comforting you, but he was not here. And it felt wrong for Loki to just leave you like that. He grimaced in the darkness. This was not his specialty. He had no idea how to comfort a crying woman. But his feet would not carry him away. </p><p>He tried not to groan too loudly, but took several heavy steps towards the door to try to keep from frightening you. When he did enter the room, you now had your back to the door. He could tell that you were trying to wipe your eyes. He stood behind you for some time, giving you a bit of privacy to try to compose yourself, but it became clear that it was a losing battle.</p><p>“What is it?” His voice sounded so uncertain in the air. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>You stiffened a little, and wiped at your face one more time before turning to smile at him. He had to look away. Your eyes were pink and glossy, your cheeks still streaked with tears, but you were still trying to smile like everything was okay. He moved to sit beside you without fully intending to. He was clearly intruding on something. But he sat, still without looking at you. </p><p>“Can’t sleep, huh?” Your wavery voice made his stomach twist. “That’s hard. Whatever you do, don’t make yourself black tea. The caffeine. I made that mistake once. Herbal tea is better, if you drink it. Chamomile makes me sleepy sometimes, have you tried it?”</p><p>He couldn’t play along this time, no matter how desperately you were trying to shift the focus onto him. He reached out to nudge your leg gently. “Why were you crying?” </p><p>You were quiet for so long that he began to wonder if you planned to answer him at all. He wished he had a tissue or a handkerchief to offer you, or anything that you could fidget with through the uncomfortable silence, but he had nothing for you. Finally you drew in a soft breath and let it out. “It’s nothing big. It’s dumb. I’m just...lonely.” Thankfully, he caught himself before he could laugh out loud, but his disbelief must have showed in his face, because you crossed your legs a little tighter, shrank down into yourself a little more. “I know, I’m surrounded by people, how could I be lonely, right? But I can’t touch any of them. I’m one of those annoying people who likes to hug and touch people, but I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable. I haven’t really touched anyone for a long time now, so it’s throwing me off, but I’ll get used to it. It’s nothing to worry about, I promise.”</p><p>Was <i>this</i> what was making you sad all this time? Something as simple and easily-fixed as this? He’d been imagining some tragic history, some painful memory that wouldn’t leave you alone. Even he knew that everyone in the Tower had something in their story that made them deeply and irreparably unhappy, so he’d always just assumed that you were the same. This was almost simple. The person that he’d been before, it’s true that <i>he</i> might have scoffed and walked away, but tonight he couldn’t. He reached out and closed his hand around yours, bringing it closer to his body so that he could fold his other hand around it too. You didn’t gasp. You didn’t flinch. You didn’t try to pull away. Thus emboldened, he turned his head to look at you. </p><p>“You may touch me. I won’t mind it.” Somehow, he kept himself from adding on ‘if it’s you’. He was not wild about the idea of anyone else manhandling him, but you, with your soft touch and gentle heart, you were okay. Especially if allowing you to touch him could possibly be enough to keep you from crying silently in the darkness. </p><p>You were quiet for a long time. Maybe you were trying to figure him out. He ventured a smile, one that he hoped was quiet and reassuring as yours so often were. He brushed his thumb along the back of your hand. Your skin was soft. That wasn’t surprising.</p><p>“Could...could I hug you? Right now?” There was still a waver in your voice, but this one didn’t sound quite as sad. He didn’t trust himself to answer you aloud, so he met your eyes and nodded slightly. He watched a quick smile flit across your face, and then you looked away, like you had to gather your courage. For the first time, possibly ever, he told himself that it wasn’t because he frightened you. You pulled yourself up onto your knees and edged toward him slowly, like you wanted to give him time to change his mind. He wanted to pull you up against him, but refrained. In your own time.</p><p>At last, you put your arms around him and tucked your head against his neck. He gave you time to adjust to the feel of him, and then raised his arms to hold you too. You felt nice. Loki was not a hugger. He was not particularly touchy. But he liked the feeling of you there in his arms, nestling close to him. If this was what hugging you always felt like, he could easily see you changing his mind. All too soon, you started to pull away, and though he knew that he should let you, he couldn’t make himself do it. He tightened his arms around you and leaned his cheek against your head. You did not fight him.</p><p>You sat there, together, until the sun turned the skies a lighter blue.</p>
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